Camila B Ortega, MD1, Kelli Friedman, PhD2, Hui-Jie Lee, PhD3, Dana Portenier, MD1, Alfredo D Guerron, MD1. 1Duke University Health System. Department of Surgery. Division of Metabolic and Weight Loss Surgery, 2Duke University Medical Center. Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences and Department of Surgery., 3Duke Universitty Medical Center. Department of Biostatistics and Bioinformatics.
INTRODUCTION: Magnetic Surgery is a recently developed technique assisting in the completion of laparoscopic procedures with reduced number of incisions, therefore providing the potential benefits of even less invasive interventions in terms of postoperative pain, complications, and cosmetic results. Patient perceptions are very important for the clinical practice, as patient involvement in healthcare choices has grown exponentially, especially in terms of elective procedures such as bariatric surgery. The objective of this study was to evaluate the perception of surgery-related factors and a new surgical technique in a bariatric surgery population.
METHODS: A video-animation and a 22-item anonymous survey were given to the new patients of an academic medical center. The video described in non-medical terms the number and location of incisions used to perform open surgery, conventional laparoscopy, and Magnetic Surgery through a single incision approach. The survey included demographics and questions about the importance of surgery-related factors rated on a 5-point Likert scale. Similarly, patients were asked to compare Magnetic Surgery with conventional laparoscopy and to mark their responses regarding postoperative factors. This cross-sectional study was analyzed using descriptive statistics.
RESULTS: 51 patients participated in the survey. The median age was 45 yo (IQR: 36-51) and 74.5% were females. The following responses were encountered when asked about the importance of surgery-related factors:
Factor Not or slightly Moderately to very
important n(%) important n(%)
Risk of complication 1(2%) 50(98%)
Time to recovery 3(6%) 48(94%)
Postoperative pain 4(8%) 47(92%)
Duration of hospitalization 4(8%) 47(92%)
Cosmesis after surgery 12(23%) 39(77%)
The study population indicated the following responses regarding expectations from magnetic surgery compared to conventional laparoscopy:
Factor Much lower About the More or much
or lower (better) same more (worst)
n(%) n(%) n(%)
Risk of
complications 32(63%) 16(31%) 3(6%)
Time to
recovery 35(68%) 13(26%) 3(6%)
Postoperative
pain 36(70%) 13(26%) 2(4%)
Duration of
hospitalization 23(63%) 18(35%) 1(2%)
Cosmesis after
surgery 46(90%) 3(6%) 2(4%)
There was no significant evidence of different responses by demographic groups.
Additionally, 90.2% of the population indicated that a surgeon performing Magnetic Surgery should be more skillful than a surgeon performing conventional laparoscopy.
CONCLUSION: This study represents the first report of bariatric patient’s perception regarding surgery-related factors. Notably, nearly 80% of the cohort indicated that cosmesis after surgery is an important factor, whereas the responses regarding the rest of the factors were indicated as expected. The bariatric population included in this study had a positive perception of Magnetic Surgery. Furthermore, the population perceived that this technique is associated with better outcomes, better cosmetic results, and higher surgeon dexterity.
Presented at the SAGES 2017 Annual Meeting in Houston, TX.
Abstract ID: 86577
Program Number: P560
Presentation Session: iPoster Session (Non CME)
Presentation Type: Poster